Dish collecting apparatus
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional plate collecting apparatuses are unable to distinguish and collect multiple types of dishes with different shapes, heights, and widths.
Innovation Solution
A dish collecting apparatus equipped with multiple sensors that detect objects passing through a collecting slot, utilizing detection ranges at different heights and positions to differentiate between first-, second-, and third-type dishes, and perform specific processing operations based on these distinctions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a single sensor is used to detect dishes, then the device complexity is low, but the measurement precision is insufficient to distinguish multiple dish types
Solution Approach 1:
The detection system is segmented into multiple sensors positioned at different locations (above, beside, and below the conveyor belt) to detect dishes from multiple perspectives. Each sensor captures specific geometric features, and the combination of these segmented detections enables precise classification of different dish types without requiring a single complex sensor.
2Measurement precision
If multiple sensors at different positions are deployed, then the measurement precision for distinguishing dish types improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The multiple sensors are designed with universal functionality to detect various geometric features (height, width, shape) of different dish types. Each sensor serves multiple detection purposes, and the system processes their combined outputs to achieve comprehensive dish classification, reducing the need for specialized sensors for each dish type.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor arrangement incorporates spatial dimensionality by positioning sensors at different heights and locations around the conveyor belt. This multi-dimensional detection approach captures comprehensive geometric information about dishes, enabling accurate differentiation of dish types through spatial analysis rather than requiring a single complex detection point.
3Adaptability or versatility
If conventional plate collecting apparatus is used, then the device complexity is low, but the adaptability to handle multiple dish types is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The processing unit dynamically adjusts its operation based on real-time detection results from the multiple sensors. The system adapts its classification and collection processes according to the identified dish types, enabling versatile handling of different dishes while maintaining efficient and flexible operation without requiring separate dedicated systems for each dish type.
Data Source
AI summary
In order to solve a problem in conventional dish collecting apparatuses that it is not possible for conventional plate collecting apparatuses to determine and collect multiple types of dishes with different shapes, a dish collecting apparatus for causing a dish that passes through a collecting slot to be collected in a dish collecting portion in restaurants includes: a determining part that determines whether a first-type dish has passed through the collecting slot or a second-type dish whose shape is different from that of the first-type dish has passed through the collecting slot; and a processing unit that performs predetermined processing according to a determination result of the determining part. Accordingly, it is possible to determine multiple types of dishes with different shapes that pass through the collecting slot.